Travel down I-95 to McCoy Stadium. Coverage of the Pawtucket Red Sox from radio broadcaster Jeff Levering.

Results tagged ‘ Ted Williams ’

As documented by Baseball in Wartime, a total of 1,363 major and minor league league players, managers, coaches and umpires served in the U.S. Armed Forces during World War II. Of those brave men, 29 were Hall of Famers.

Calculating how many professional baseball players took a role in World War I is not as precise. Best estimates suggest that fewer than 200 served in the Great War. According to Baseball-Almanac, 25 major league Hall of Famers served in World War I, including Ty Cobb.

Five major league Hall of Famers served in the Korean War. Most notably, Red Sox legend TedWilliams,who also served in World War II. A Marine Corps pilot, Williams was on active duty from 1942-46 and 1952-53.

Teddy Ballgame missed three years of playing time as a result of World War II. In his first year back in the big leagues (1946), he hit .342 with 38 home runs and 123 RBI.

On this Memorial Day from McCoy Stadium, the PawSox thank all the fine men and women who have served the United States military. If it wasn’t for them, who knows if we would be playing a game this afternoon.

Just because I’m back in Rhode Island doesn’t mean I can’t still write about my time in Ft. Myers. One of my favorite features of the the new ballpark is the Retired Numbers Courtyard outside “Gate E.” I took some photos of the display before I left and wanted to make sure you had a chance to see them.

Joe Cronin

Carl Yastrzemski

Johnny Pesky

Jackie Robinson

Ted Williams

Bobby Doerr

Carlton Fisk

Jim Rice

Flower Bed Next to the Numbers

Outside “Gate E”

My broadcast partner Steve Hyder is now in Ft. Myers for the entire week. You can check out Steve’s updates by reading his blog.

When I was a senior in college, I purchased the first hot dog sold at the new Busch Stadium in St. Louis and sold it for $300 on eBay – seriously. Although my $296.50 profit was impressive, it was nothing compared to the woman currently auctioning off a “rare President George Washington Chicken McNugget.” Never mind that this delicious delicacy has been in her freezer for three years, what’s important is that it currently has 57 bids and is up to $4,350. Since I know you’re curious, here is the actual eBay auction page.

Assuming you haven’t stopped reading because you’re suddenly craving McDonalds, we can move on to baseball.

Little known fact: Tek was a member of the 1992 U.S. Olympic team (Globe Staff Photo / Barry Chin)

There haven’t been many captains in major league baseball history other than Jason Varitek. As you no doubt have heard, the two-time World Series champion will officially announce his retirement on Thursday in Fort Myers. Although his future role has not been disclosed, word is that he is expected to remain with the organization in some capacity. “Tek” suited up for the Sox from 1997-2011. During that time he hit .256 with 193 home runs and 757 RBIs. In the 103 -year history of the Red Sox, only Hall of Famers Carl Yastrzemski (23 seasons), Ted Williams (19) and Jim Rice (16) had longer playing careers without suiting up for another team.

The Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Yankees, an International League North Division foe of the PawSox, will play every game on the road this season because of renovations to their home ballpark, PNC Field. Lackawanna County is in the middle of negotiating the sale of the team and which has cause a bit of a hold-up in the ballpark renovation process. No sale, no renovation. The end of the story is that there’s a chance the SWB Yankees could be on the move.

Over the Monster did a nice interview today with Jason Parks of Baseball Prospectus and asked him his thoughts on PawSox catcher Ryan Lavarnway.

“I’m not sure about the bat; legit pop, but can he make enough contact for it to matter? Once the book gets written on his weaknesses at the plate, major league pitching will be able to manipulate those weaknesses for their own gain. I think you can attack Lavarnway up and in and dare him to generate enough bat speed to beat you. If he does, tip the cap and try another approach. But I’d dare him to hit quality velocity around the letters, especially if you can bust him inside. I don’t think he has the bat speed to handle it.” Read the rest of the article here.

As one fan suggested on Twitter early this morning, how great would a Varitek/Tim Wakefield first pitch be on Opening Day at Fenway Park this year?

A total of 87,253 fans registered for the approximately1,000 available tickets in lottery for opening night at the new Marlins Park

Thank you to my latest subscriber, dentalguy.Althoughthat’s a bit of a nerdy name, nerdy is a good thing when you make more money than everyone else. You can be just as cool as dental guy by typing your email address into the empty box in the top-right corner of this screen and clicking “Subscribe.” It’s so easy, even a dentist can do it.

One thing every dentist loves is sugary maple syrup. That means every dentist should love today, National Pancake Day. Eat up!

I had the rare fortune to spend last night with countless other Red Sox fans eager for 2012 at the 73rd annual Boston Baseball Writers Dinner at the Westin Copley Place Hotel in Boston. Nine other PawSox front office members joined me for what was a fun night with great people all eager for baseball. As you can see, I even made a new friend.

One of the highlights of the night for me came when I got to talk one-on-one with the program’s emcee, ESPN’s Karl Revech. Originally from Needham, Ma., Karl was a pleasure to talk with and had great respect for the PawSox.

Ravech did a terrific job as emcee with the perfect blend of humor and history.

Ortiz accepted the Tim Wakefield Award for his work with children both in Boston and his native Santo Domingo.

Saltalamacchia was given the Good Guy Award. An honor given in memory of the late Tommy McCarthy, a long-time Red Sox press steward. Friendly and cooperative with the press, Salty fits the description of a “good guy” in every way.

The Red Sox Minor League Player of the Year award was given to PawSox catcher Ryan Lavarnway. Between Portland and Pawtucket, the Yale product combined to hit .290 with 32 home runs and 93 RBIs in 2011.

The Ben Mondor Award, close to the hearts of all PawSox fans, went to John McDonald. This honor is given the the New England Player of the Year. A Providence College alum, McDonald played in 84 games last season between the Blur Jays and Diamondbacks.

A Special Achievement Award was given to Red Sox great Jim Lonborg. He was the ace of the staff during his magical 1967 season where he finished 22-9, 3.16 ERA and won the Cy Young. Of almost equal importance, he was my wife’s childhood dentist (no joke).

Despite recently being traded to Oakland, former PawSox Josh Reddick took home the Red Sox Rookie of the Year Award. He ended 2011 with a .280 average, 18 doubles, three triples, seven home runs, and 28 RBIs. Fun fact: this award was first given out after the 1939 season to another left-handed hitting outfielder, Ted Williams.

Hottovy walked away with the Lou Gorman Award and was a perfect choice for his dedication and perseverance in overcoming career obstacles. On June 3rd, a month short of his 30th birthday, he pitched his first major league game for the Red Sox. Tommy is great guy who was recently signed by the Royals.

Let’s get to the important part of the night: the food. Chicken thigh with potatoes and carrots were served.

My thanks to the PawSox for treating me to such a fantastic event. Baseball will be here before we know it.

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